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Nobody could claim international travel bores Robert “Dondi” DeShields.
“What I really expect is a time like no other before in terms of competitiveness,” he said Sunday. “Mediocrity has no place and losing is not an option.”
A resident of the 1500 block of South Mole Street, DeShields serves as the head men’s basketball coach at the Community College of Philadelphia, an Eastern Pennsylvania Collegiate Conference powerhouse. Last night, he and eight top high school and community college players flew to London for the fourth Future Stars International Basketball Tournament.
Dubbed Skoolz USA Select, DeShields’ youngsters will begin play tomorrow in Pool A with a noon tilt against the Netherlands and a 4 p.m. clash with England. They are competing through a sponsorship from former Villanova University star Howard Brown and his Live the Dream Foundation.
As the first Americans to play in what has evolved into a key gathering on Europe’s basketball calendar, they will look to carry out the organization’s quest to have youths engage in activities and events promoting self-belief.
“I am very excited about Skoolz USA’s leadership and players and believe we have the talent to be extremely competitive,” Brown, a Pottstown native whose professional career has taken him to 17 cities, including his current role as a member of a team in Huesca, Spain, said.
His foundation is covering transportation costs, with the London United Basketball Club overseeing room and board expenses. As beneficiaries, the players will hope to raise their heads in victory by downing top under-18 European national squads. Many basketball experts love stating significant contrasts mark the American and European styles of play, with claims that Americans rely on athleticism and Europeans on skill. DeShields refuses to accept the talk.
“There’s really no difference but they will be in great shape, and we will be concentrating on fundamentals and our talents,” he said. “We will certainly adjust no matter what. Basketball is a game of tempos, so watch out.”
DeShields has led Community College of Philadelphia for 11 years, leading the city’s largest institution for higher education to nine regional championships and six state titles. Having taken the Philadelphia-based Richmond Group International Touring Team to Portugal in 2000, the Newbold resident will participate in his second international event. His success at the Logan Square school has not gone unnoticed, as he will speak at Saturday’s International Coaching Clinic.
“I will be speaking on big men and their post presence,” he said.
He and Brown unveiled their team at June 18’s 11th Annual Skoolz Classic Charity Showcase in Pottstown. The success of the first few showcases inspired Brown in ’07 to form his foundation, which provides mentorships, numerous programs and scholarships to enhance the development of students and athletes in the Philadelphia metropolitan area.
The foundation issues a maximum of five scholarships yearly. In its inaugural year, the Skoolz USA Select program will allow Brown to distribute another endowment next spring to the student the nonprofit deems the most valuable participant at his respective high school. With passion for molding complete young men, Brown knew selecting the team would be a rewarding endeavor.
“Coach DeShields and I discussed the impact that an international basketball experience could have on the lives of youth participants,” Brown, who has been a member of two Spanish League championship units, said. “For this reason, we wanted not only to take a group of great basketball talent but standout students, too. Our team has a combined grade point average of 3.1 and because as part of the program the student athletes were required to complete a number of off-court tasks, which included community service, we wanted to make sure that distinguished character was a high priority in our selection process.”
Three recent area graduates will look to make their stay as athletically rewarding as it will be culturally beneficial by producing point and ripping rebounds. Products of Center City’s Mathematics, Civics and Sciences Charter School, Muhammad Amin, Tyreek Riddick and Chris Stokes figure to find ample ways to make their roles in the rotation worthwhile. Having led the Mighty Elephants to the Class A State Title as tri-captains, they will strive to beat back Europe’s best before beginning their college careers.
A 6-foot-5 forward, Amin averaged 5.2 points and 7.5 rebounds for the 26-5 team. The 30th-and-Wharton-streets resident will matriculate at Lock Haven University. A 6-foot-1 guard, Riddick, of 21st and McKean streets, earned Third-Team All-Public designation after averaging 11.4 points. Mansfield University will soon benefit from his talents, while East Stroudsburg University will gain an opportunity to scope the skills of 6-foot guard Stokes, also of 30th and Wharton streets, who averaged 3.7 points.
“I feel blessed to be able to travel,” Stokes said yesterday. “It will be my first time playing overseas and in fact my first time leaving the country.”
The Grays Ferry figure is eager to experience new culture and to leave behind the worries of life in Philadelphia for an unforgettable opportunity to enjoy himself.
“The time will be like a vacation, but I am eager to help us to win,” he said.
A member of the June 18 team, he will be reunited with DeShields.
“It’s special to be able to play for him,” Stokes said. “He has so many championships, so I’m ready for the action and to see how things go.”
Stokes and his mates earned their chance to compete through the organizers’ recognizing Brown’s foundation for its work with junior basketball players and for its communal outreach. If the ballers fare well in tomorrow’s games by finishing first or second in Pool A, they will compete in Saturday’s semifinals. Regardless of their results, they will cap their stay on Sunday in either a consolation game or the final. All of that day’s action at Brunel University will benefit the Teenage Cancer Trust.
“I expect something new,” DeShields said of the contests. “We invented the game so I may have some tricks up my sleeves.”
He and Brown confessed to gargantuan respect for each other.
“Dr. Martin Luther King had a dream, whereas Howard makes it come more to life,” DeShields said. “What Howard is doing is amazing, Just to uplift, empower and enrich a community and now to join hands with the city of Philadelphia, this thing is only going to get better.”
“Coach DeShields has done extraordinary things with his student athletes, not just on the court but academically as well,” Brown said. “He has also been a friend of the family for as long as I remember, so not only do I know the extraordinary coach he has become, I know the great man, mentor and leader of young men that he has always been.”
Contact Staff Writer Joseph Myers at jmyers@southphillyreview.com or ext. 124.
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